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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: net · craft · straw · bat · racket · hide · fall · board

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. net — for catching
  7. craft — a skill
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. net — after costs
  10. bat — the animal
  11. board — a committee
  12. fall — to drop
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. craft — boats
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. fall — to drop
  21. board — to get on
  22. fall — the season
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. racket — a loud noise

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com